


Puppy Love

by Whistle_Mist



Category: Naruto
Genre: Crushes, M/M, Puppy Love, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 17:56:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14360628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whistle_Mist/pseuds/Whistle_Mist
Summary: And they call it puppy love.





	Puppy Love

**Author's Note:**

> Also, a special thanks to my friend on discord for Betaing this for me, that you Gaara of the Doughnuts

“Jeez, Kakashi, why are you so mean to Gai?” Obito asked after the two had finished with another challenge, the other shinobi, Maito Gai, having run off to go do more laps around the village. Obito kind of wondered if he really was going to run five hundred times around the whole place. “You enjoy those challenges, admit it.”

“What’s it to you?” Kakashi huffed as they made their way back to the training grounds where they were supposed to meet up with their sensei to get in some more training. “Come on, we don’t need to be late.”

“We won’t be late!” Obito insisted. “We have plenty of time. I’m going to go get something to drink. Go on ahead without me.”

“You’re going to be late, you always are!” Kakashi yelled as the other boy took off with a lopsided grin. “I am not going to come looking for you!”

“See you later, Kakashi!” Obito ran off, jumping onto a nearby roof before heading towards the marker. He needs something cold to drink, maybe water or even some tea. As he ran he noticed Gai running along. Jumping down next to the other, he falls in line with him. “Hey, Gai! Are you really going to run five hundred times?”

“Of course!” Gai grinned, never missing a beat as he continued on with his goal. “It’s my Ninja way! I will not give up!”

“What if you can’t? What then?”

“Then I’ll do one thousand push-ups!” Gai declared with a grin, looking over at him. “I won’t give up no matter what.”

“Seems kinda hard, but okay,” Obito kept running with him not really sure why but they ended up talking as they did so, eventually he was counting how many times Gai had gone around until he realized that he was supposed to have met up with his team a while ago. “Hey, Gai! I gotta go, but uh, want to go grab some lunch with me tomorrow?”

“Of course!” Gai gave him a thumbs up with that large grin of his. “I’ll see you at Ichiraku’s!”

“Alright, let’s meet up at noon!” That was plenty of time! He was sure he wouldn’t be late! “See ya tomorrow!”

“Looking forward to it!”

\--

The next day Obito was running towards the ramen shop cursing himself. It was almost one o’clock, an hour since he told Gai he would meet up with him for lunch. How did this happen?! He had even left early! Ugh, he had been distracted by something stupid again. Rushing towards the shop, the spiky-haired boy ran in panting as he spotted Gai there talking to a few other kids their age.

“Gai! I’m so sorry I’m late!” Obito pressed his hands together, bowing his head a little. “I hope you're not mad!”

“Obito!” Gai grinned not seeming bothered as he stood up to greet the Uchiha. “Come join me! This is Genma and Ebisu. They're my teammates.”

“Nice to meet you,” Genma said with a smile. “We already ate, but Gai’s been waiting for you so we’ll head on out.”

“Yeah, see you later, Gai,” Ebisu grinned, the two boys standing and waving bye as they left. “Have a nice lunch.”

Once they were gone, Obito sat down beside Gai, face flushed with embarrassment that the other boys’ teammates mentioned that he hadn’t eaten at all because he had been waiting for Obito to show up.

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s alright! Now that you're here we may order.” Gai grinned as Teuchi asked for what kind of ramen they would like to have. Once the order had been placed and their bowls were set down before them, Gai grinned. “This is the best ramen in all of the Hidden Leaf!”

“Yeah, it is!” Obito smiled, taking a bite of his food before looking over at Gai. “Did you get your laps done?”

“No, we ended up having a mission. Just got back this morning so I need to do my one thousand push-ups after lunch.”

“Yeah? Where do you train?”

“Anywhere can be used as a Training Ground, but we mostly use Training Ground Five.” Taking some noodles and slurping them up, Gai looked back at him. “Want to come train with me?”

“Sure!” Obito said because he had been rude by being late so training for a little bit wouldn’t hurt. “What are we doing?”

“I need help with my push-ups.”

“Huh???”

\--

“Seven hundred and four, seven hundred and five,” Obito counted as he sat on Gai’s back, the other shinobi having wanted him to sit on him as a weight so he could do his push-ups “properly”. He had to admit, it was impressive that Gai could so to many with a person on his back; especially while switching from one hand to the other. “Seven hundred and six, seven hundred and seven.”

This went on for a little while longer until they neared the end and Obito ended up cheering.

“Nine hundred and ninety-eight! Nine hundred and ninety-nine! One thousand!” Obito screamed, jumping off Gai’s back. “You did it!”

Panting a little, Gai plopped onto the ground, quickly sitting up and snagging the water bottle he had brought along and gulped down most of it before grinning at Obito, giving him a thumbs up.

“Yes! I have succeeded! Thanks for your help,” Gai said as he stood to stretch. “Do you need help with anything?”

“No thanks. I’m good,” grinned Obito, walking over to him. “Want to walk around the market? See if there’s anything fun or interesting going on?”

“Sure,” Gai replied as the two of them made their way out of the training grounds, choosing to hop from the branches of the trees to make better time towards the hustle and bustle of the village. “What do you like to do there?”

“I kinda like to just explore. It’s why I'm always late too, well, everything. I love discovering new things, looking at the shops, and because of that I end up losing track of time,” the Uchiha explained as they jumped over the smaller branches. “I can show you some really awesome places if you want.”

“Sounds great!”

The pair ended up exploring the shops Obito had found all the many times he had been there before for hours. By the time they had finished and were leaving the last shop, it was dark out; way past dinner and the both of them were hungry. Obito sighed and, digging through his bag, he took out his wallet with a frown. He was going to get something to eat before going home.

Since he was considered the black sheep of his clan, they wouldn’t care if he had eaten or not. Well, he’d just go hungry. Maybe a new mission would pop up soon so he could grab snacks to eat.

“Are you hungry?” Gai asked, noticing the frown on the black haired boys face. “There’s this Korean Barbecue place not too far from here. Want to go eat there?”

“I-I can’t,” Obito said embarrassed holding up his wallet. “I don’t have any money.”

“I’ll pay for it.” Gai grinned grabbing Obito around the shoulders, pulling him along. “Besides you helped me out for two hours in my training! It’s the least I can do!”

“Well, I was late so next time I’ll pay!” Obito promised as they headed towards the restaurant. The food had been so delicious, too! And after eating way too much, he walked with Gai until they had to part ways so they could each head home. He waved, “It was fun hanging out! Let’s do it again soon!”

“Of course! See you around, Obito!” Gai grinned with one last thumb up before turning to leave.

\--

The more Obito hung out with Gai, the more he liked the other shinobi. They had a lot in common, especially with them both having to work hard as to keep up with others. At some point, it wasn’t Gai showing up to challenge Kakashi while he and his teammates were talking, but rather Kakashi seeking them out having wondered if they had both died.

“There you are!” Kakashi huffed walking over pointing at Obito. “You missed training! Sensei had to leave on a mission.”

“What?! No, I didn't! Training doesn't start until one!”

“It’s four, Obito!” Kakashi huffed sticking his nose up before looking at Gai. “Here for another challenge?”

“I was hanging out with Obito. We’re training.”

“What?” Kakashi frowned. This was new... and awkward. How in the world did he interrupt these two and not Gai interrupt him? “Uh, so… no challenge then?”

“Now that you've brought it up!” Gai jumped to his feet grinning. “Let us race to the Hokage tower, rival!”

Groaning Kakashi nodded. He could have been home free, but instead, he had brought this on himself. “Fine, let’s go.”

 

\--

 

The shouts coming from Training Ground Five could be heard off in the distance as Team Minato made its way over to their own proclaimed training ground. Obito could tell that it was Gai cheering and wondered what he had mastered today. After all, Gai had told him that he was going to become the world's greatest Master in Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu; but at this point in time, he has been working on Taijutsu.

“Hey, Obito!” Kakashi called. “We’re leaving without you! Stop standing there with your head in the clouds!”

“Huh?!” Obito looked over to see that his team was further away than before; he must have stopped but wasn't sure when. Rushing over he walked alongside Rin. “Sorry!”

“Thinking about Gai?” Rin asked with a smile. “How is he by the way?”

“He’s great! He’s climbing up the ranks so fast, it’s almost insane,” Obito smiled happily, thinking about him. “I can’t wait until everyone realizes what an amazing person he is.”

“Aww~ Obito, do you have a crush on him?”

It threw Obito off for a second before he blushed furiously, his heart beating faster. “NO! No! We’re just good friends! Not a crush, it’s not a crush!”

Rin giggled at how her best friend responded before patting his hand. “It’s alright. Besides, I think he likes you too.”

“Wh-what?” Face turning pink, Obito bit his lip nervously. “You think so? I mean, what makes you say that?”

“Oh, just the way you two are. You should tell him.”

“NO! I mean, I can’t- it’s just- I don’t- We’re not-” Obito shook his head quickly before suddenly picking up his pace, running past his teammates and Sensei. “I’m going to go train by myself for a little bit!”

 

But instead of training, Obito had headed over towards Training Ground Five. He hid up in a nearby tree, trying to see what the other team was up to. Both of Gai’s teammates looked tired; they were still sparing by the looks of it, both of them having to dodge Gai who was going after them as he whooped and hollered happily.

Sitting down on the branch, Obito set his elbows on his legs, resting his head in his hands as he watched, his mouth curving into a smile. After a half hour, their Sensei called it a day. Gai still looked like he could train for the rest of the day but his friends, however, were both ready to stop

Jumping down he walked over. “Hey, Gai.”

 

“Obito!” Gai grinned as he easily hauled Genma up to his feet, the poor kid gasping from surprise as he was yanked. “Training today?”

“Yeah, looks like you guys just got done.” He smiled. “Uh, so what are you going to do now?”

“I’m going home,” Genma answered, groaning as he rubbed his back. “Gai’s getting too strong. I need an ice bath and a nap.”

“I do as well,” Ebisu said, pushing his glasses higher up on his nose. “See you tomorrow, Gai. Genma.”

“See you tomorrow, Gai! Ebisu!”

“Bye!” Gai called before turning to Obito. “I’m going to go get some dango and tea. Want to come?”

“Sure!”

Obito skipped training that day but he did get a work out with all the stuff Gai wanted to do and Obito was kind of proud that he was able to run three hundred laps around the Leaf.

\--

Almost a year later, both Obito and Gai were sitting on a log as Gai held a small turtle in his palm. It was tiny, but Gai had managed to summon it. It was quite impressive for someone their age. It required a lot of chakra, which was probably why Gai’s chest was heaving as he tried to fill his lungs with air. “See?” He gasped a bright grin on his face despite it all. “I just… had to keep… going.”

“That's so cool! I can’t believe you were able to summon it!” Obito laughed reaching over to pick it up, staring right at the turtle as it poofed away suddenly. “I didn't do it!” was his immediate response.

“No, it was me,” Gai gasped even though he was still smiling. “Guess that my chakra limit. I just need to train and get stronger.”

“Well, you did spend a month on this, so it’s a win!” Obito grinned, grabbing the large browed boy a water bottle. “I think you need some water, Gai.”

“Thanks, I do,” he said as he took the bottle graciously, downing a good amount before gasping for air. “I’ll try again when I have all of my chakra back.”

“I bet next time you’ll be able to summon a huge turtle spirit!”

“Yosh! I will!” Gai jumped up throwing his arms in the arm. “With my shinobi way, I will be the best summing shinobi!”

“Yeah! You can do it!” Cheered the black haired genin, throwing his hands up as well. “I can’t wait to see it!” 

“Hey, Obito, aren’t you late for your team training?” 

“Huh?!” Obito looked shocked, quickly fishing around for a watch; why he owned one when he never actually uses it, he’ll never know. “Gah! I’m late! Bye Gai! I’ll see you later!” 

\--

“You two sure spend a lot of time together,” Kakashi pointed out as they hid together in a bush, waiting for Rin to find them. She was excellent at tracking, so they were doing their best to keep hidden. “Has Gai been giving you challenges?”

“No, we just train, talk, and y’know just hanging out,” Obito grinned happily before he began to start talking about the green-clad boy; how great he was at Taijutsu, how much closer he was getting to being able to do one thousand laps around the village in one go, how hard he trained, how kind he was, and he just kept going. “And you won’t believe what he’s able to do, Kakashi! He can sum-”

“Will you stop talking?” Kakashi shouted as he shot the Uchiha with a glare, their task of keeping quiet and well hidden forgotten. Something just wasn't settling well in his stomach. For some reason, he didn’t like the two hanging out together. “Don’t you see Gai enough when he challenges me?” 

“It’s different, you two are always in some contest. I like hanging out with him anyways without anyone else. It’s really nice,” Obito mentions before frowning. “Why? Do you want to hang out with him by yourself?”

“He was my rival first!” Kakashi snapped, quickly noticing how jealous he sounded to himself, and if he sounded jealous to himself, it had to have sounded that way to Obito. Kakashi shook himself before saying, “I mean, he’s strong enough to get into good enough practice.”

“You can always join us. We’re going to go up into the mountains to train. You want to come with us?” Obito offered. “It’s going to be fun.”

“No, I have work to do,” Kakashi huffed, crossing his arms. “I know that training comes first, unlike you.” 

“Seriously?! I work hard too!” Obito yelled. “I’m just as good as you are, Kakashi and don’t you forget it!” 

“Yeah, right! That’s some lie you tell yourself!”

“Hey, guys! I found you!” Rin said from behind them, looking comfortable and amused as if she had been there for a while. “You two are loud, good thing this is only training.” 

“She’s right,” Minato smiled. “I think next time you two should work on being a bit more… silent.” 

Both Kakashi and Obito sighed feeling a bit stupid for fighting when they were in the middle of training.

\--

“Are you alright?” Gai asked as they climbed the side of the mountain. He had been doing this for months now, using his skills to carefully make his way up, ever determined to get stronger. He would pass the chunin exams when the time came. “You need help?”

“I got it! I think Genma needs more help than me.” Obito looked back at the boy who was groaning as he clung to a rope. This was their third time going up and Gai had insisted that they wear leg and arm weights to help them on this last climb. “You okay, Genma?!”

“Not really. Gai gets up at four in the morning to train,” He grumbled. Taking a moment to breathe he closed his eyes before finding the will and strength to continue. “But I guess the chunin exams won't be a piece of cake either,” 

“Yes, we need to work harder than everyone else!” Gai grinned. “Come on, let’s go!” 

“Right!” Ebisu and Genma called following Gai up the side. 

It had taken a while before Obito had learned that Gai’s team was the only one that had a Sensei that was more along the lines of a “part-time Sensei” because of the war. It rotated between their squad leader each team member, meaning that their skills where all spread about. 

Sometime after that, he discovered that most of the team’s training was done by Gai. He studied and worked on everything he could from books to seeking out different Shinobi to learn what was needed, even finding out new techniques for his teammates. 

In turn, Genma and Ebisu followed Gai in pretty much every aspect of training form; from waking up at four am, Sensei or no, to eating what would be the best for their bodies. Though Genma figured out that if he whined enough, Gai would let the food schedule slide a bit for sweets and chips and other such things.

“Come on, let’s go!” Gai cheered from above, seeing as he was the furthest up. “Yosh! We’re almost there! Come on!” 

“Hai!” They all called up, quick to return to their previous activity.

A little while later, Obito noticed that there was small crack under one of the rocks. He went around trying to keep up with Gai. Dang, that kid would move fast, even with the weights on his arms and legs. Groaning, he had made it up a bit more when he heard the sound of something shift, using some of his chakra to grip onto the edge, taking in small breaths. 

“Careful, there’s a weak spot there,” Obito called down before he moved to kept going. “Almost there… just a little bit more- Ahhhh!”

A piece of the rock formation gave away, not leaving enough time for Obito to grab back onto the side. He seemed to be falling faster than he normally would have, and he immediately thought of the weights on his arms and legs. He looked over his shoulder, and seeing the tops of the trees rushing up to meet him, he screamed. 'This was it,’ he thought. ‘I’m going to die!’

“Third Gate of Life Open!” Came a yell from above. Obito didn't know who it was, for he was too busy trying not to think about hitting the ground (and becoming a human pancake) when suddenly he was swooped up by someone. He assumed it must have been Minato Sensei, or someone of that standard, because of the strength that they had. It wasn't until they landed on a tree did he learn. “Obito! Are you alright?!”

“Gai?!” Obito gasped as he stared up at the boy holding him as if they were newlyweds and he the bride. Gai's skin had taken on a reddish color with green looking chakra surrounding him like a flame, his hair blown up by some unseeable wind. The sclera of his eyes having spread out to cover the dark brown of his iris’ and pupils, making it seem as if it his eyes were completely white. It suddenly vanished as the other boy grinned down at him, causing his heart to flutter suddenly as a small pink flush settled across his cheeks. “What… what happened?”

“I used the Eight Gates to catch you. It's a good thing that you took off your weights. Otherwise, it would've hurt a great deal when I caught you.” 

“Weights?” Obito had been so stunned he hadn’t noticed that his weights from before had been removed. Glancing down he could see the four items on the ground, dents in the earth before looking back up. “Wow… thanks, Gai... Wow.” 

Laughing loudly Gai jumped down, lowering Obito’s legs down to the ground. “It’s no problem. Ready to go again?”

“Uh-huh,” Obito nodded before shaking himself, stepping out of the other’s arms and clearing his throat. The corners of his mouth turned up into a grin as he laughed. “Yeah! Let’s go!”

\--

“I can’t believe we got stuck out here in the rain,” Obito frowned as the two of them stood under the shelter of an old shack. It wouldn’t have been a problem, running out into the rain, had it not been for the scrolls that needed to be delivered. Both he and Kakashi where there as he held the bag that contained them. Looking at the scrolls he sighed. “Geez, I was supposed to go home to help out… how come they don’t make these bags waterproof?”

When there was no answer or even a sarcastic remark, Obito looked over to where Kakashi had been a moment ago, only to find a log in his teammates’ place. 

“What-? Kakashi! You jerk!” Obito yelled looking around, trying to figure out when the other had left. “Get back here! I don’t want to wait in the rain by myself! Kakashi!” 

“Obito?” 

“Ah!” Jumping and nearly dropping the bag, Obito held it close to his chest, looking to see who it was. “Gai?” 

“Hey,” Gai grinned holding an umbrella. “I thought that was you. What are you doing here by yourself?” 

“I wasn’t until Kakashi took off!” Obito pouted before sighing. “I guess you don’t happen to have a waterproof bag?” 

“I do, actually,” Gai pulled out one, holding to open it with one hand as Obito put all the items into it making sure it was sealed good and tight. “You can keep it. I have more. Want me to walk you back to wherever it was that you were going?” 

“I was going to drop these off at the mission center then head home, but I really want to go after Kakashi and yell at him for leaving me alone.” Obito glared at the stupid log before getting under the umbrella with Gai. “So, what are doing out here? Training?” 

“No, we finished and I had to help Genma home. He twisted his ankle so I gave him a piggyback ride back.” Gai smiled as they made their way down the road. “You get used to him up and leaving, trust me. It’s kinda my rival’s thing.” 

“I guess, but it still sucks,” 

They made their way through the empty streets, heading back to the mission center as they talked about this and that. When they arrived, though, a few things had to be signed before they could head back out. Obito started to talk about his teams’ training sessions, some of the things they had learned along the way. 

“Oh, hey, where are you going by the way?” Obito asked as they got closer to the Uchiha Compound. He had just realized that Gai must have been heading somewhere after taking his teammates home, and he couldn't help the grin that was plastered across his face. “More training?” 

“No, I was actually going to go head home to make some dinner,” Gai smiled. “I wanted to make sure you got home alright.”

“Wha- Gai! You’ve been with me for two hours! And I know you have to be hungry by now, especially after a day of training.” Obito frowned upset that he caused Gai to go without food, knowing that most likely he ate some time early in the morning and nothing but water after that. “You didn’t have to walk me home.” 

“I wanted to.” Gai paused for a second after looking over at Obito for a long moment with a smile before humming. “Can I do something?” 

“Sure! “What is it- Mmp???” Obito was interrupted when suddenly Gai was extremely and he could feel their lips pressed together. It was a simple kiss that took Obito completely by surprise and when it was over he looked at Gai in astonishment, his face turning red, “Wha-what?”

“Sorry, I’ve been wanting to do that for a while now. I won’t do it again if you don’t want me to.” Gai looked embarrassed then like he should have explained more on what he wanted instead. “I have to go now.” 

Still, in shock, Obito watched for a minute as Gai walked way. After a few seconds, he shook himself and ran after him, calling out his name over the downpour of rain. When he reached the other boy, he grabbed the other’s hand, entwining their fingers as he smiled stupidly. “I liked it. I kinda… wanted to do that too,” Obito admitted softly before scratching his cheek for a second. “I kinda... like you too. Like, I like you a lot.”

“I like you a lot, too,” Gai grinned before laughing loudly. “Come on, let’s go get something to eat at Ichiraku’s since it’s already passed dinner time!” 

Hand in hand the two walked, both unsure on where the path that they had chosen would lead them or how they would take it when others will tell them it is was only “puppy love”. Neither could be answered, however, because Team Minato was ambushed not two weeks later, causing two of its three members to perish.


End file.
